I am married and the father of four adult children. I also have one grandson, one dog, and two cats. As for my favorite local hangouts, they include the Troy Community Center, the Troy Public Library (especially the Friends Bookshop), and the Dream Cruise or local car cruise venues when in season.

I am single but have a wonderful relationship with my partner Allison, and we both enjoy TPL! I was involved early in helping spread the Internet back before it was commercialized, and thus have had a lot of exposure to many computing platforms thanks to my alma mater, Oakland University, consulting, and my full time work. I enjoy helping others with computing and network issues, and have helped people recover / convert older word processing documents from extinct platforms so that they may become current ebooks!

What is your educational and/or professional background?

Graduated from Oakland University in 1994, Economics, Computer Science, and Anthropology. I have been with Altair Engineering in Troy for 20 years working in IT management.

What makes you passionate about the library and/or the Friends?

Books made me what I am, and I have enjoyed TPL even before I moved to Troy. TPL’s generous access to those that work in Troy is a tremendous benefit, and spreading the word about what the Friends and the TPL both accomplish is very important. The Library and the people I have met through it have been there for me, good days and bad, and by reading, using the databases, and attending events, I have learned a great deal about many topics!

What are your favorite types of books/materials to read?

Science Fiction, Technology, and (gasp!) Economics

Who is your favorite author?

Arthur C. Clarke

What is your favorite book?

Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

Where do you see/hope to see the Friends in five years?

Online searchable Book Shop (don’t worry, I’ll help with it!), and helping TPL move to a larger, more current building.

What is the most valuable thing TPL offers the community?

Being open. I immediately feel brighter just walking into TPL and exploring. It was devastating when the Library was perhaps going to be closed for a while (during the millage decision issue), and I thank the entire community for coming together and helping ensure it remains in our community.

Special hours on Wednesday December 20 for last minute holiday shopping. The Friends Book Shop will be open 3-7 PM. Located on the lower level of Troy Public Library, 90% of the inventory is priced at $1 or less (and even some of those will be discounted!). We’ll be giving away some special prizes to lucky shoppers, too.

Our Friends Gift Shop will also be open until 7PM on Wednesday.

Enjoy some great deals on used books, recorded media and memorable gifts while supporting the Troy Public Library.

The Friends of the Troy Public Library are thankful to all of our Friends, our volunteers, our library patrons, and our customers. Without the collective group, our work could not be done.

In the last year, the Friends have donated the funding for the programming of the library, the lobby furniture, and other enhancements that benefit the entire library community.

Our lobby Friends Shop is open daily, and our lower-level Book Shop operates every Sat./Sun. that the Library is open. Visit us soon to see what we have to offer. Additionally, watch this space for announcements of upcoming holiday events and special shopping experiences!